Behind the baby shower deception by Kirsten McCulloch

Behind the baby shower deception

I’ve come to the conclusion that baby showers are all about delusion.

A few weeks before my now five-month-old, Mikeala, was born my mum held a sort of baby shower for me. I had a mother and baby blessing instead of a shower before Liam was born, but it was so much fun painting baby singlets and bodysuits at my cousin’s shower earlier in the year that my mum decided to throw me a t-shirt painting party of my very own.

Mum told people they didn’t need to bring gifts (we have pretty much everything already), but hand-me-down girls clothes would be welcome. So we ended up absolutely swimming in frilly pink baby clothes – and of course despite the instructions there were quite a lot of new clothes among them. Unwrapping all those clothes on the day did arouse the sort of pre-baby excitement that they are designed to do. Baby clothes really are so cute (though don’t get me started on the ugliness of little boy clothes from about size 2 on – all dark colours, skateboards and skulls and crossbones!). And of course painting the tiny singlets with fabric paint and talking with my girlfriends about their babies (with, admittedly, some talk of haemorrhoids and cracked nipples) also added to the anticipation.

But I got to thinking later – new babies are actually a lot of work. And you know what? All those cute little t-shirts and jackets notwithstanding, sticking them in a wondersuit and leaving it at that is a lot easier and more pleasant, and not just for them! Changing a tiny helpless baby is hard enough without trying to make a fashion statement out of it.

So what I think is that baby showers, with all those cute clothes, are a way of celebrating the idea of the baby, before the reality of sleepless nights, screaming nappy changes, and endless washing cycles hits. They’re a distraction from the discomforts of late pregnancy and a great chance to get together with some friends before the baby daze sets in, but the real reason we hold them before the baby is born is that afterwards all the new parents want is sleep and someone to cook their meals (and look after the older child if they have one). So all those delightful little clothes their friends have such fun buying for them would barely be awarded a second glance if they arrived after the event.

Kirsten McCulloch (2006)
To visit Kirsten's blog Click Here

Coffee Break is a parent’s insight to life in Canberra.  If you’d like to contribute, we’d love to share your view of the world with other like-minded mums and dads.  Just send your contributions through to feedback@canberrakids.com.au along with your contact details.

The information on this webpage is provided by the advertisers listed on this site. Canberra Kids takes no responsibility for the accuracy of the information. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the advertiser and do not necessarily reflect those of Canberra Kids.

For more information please see our privacy policy and disclaimer.